Apr 7, 2026 ✪ Members first on April 7, 2026 FRONTLINE
What was behind Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s deal with President Donald Trump to imprison deportees from the U.S. at CECOT? FRONTLINE and El Faro investigate.

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Three months into President Donald Trump’s second term, President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador opened the doors of his country’s notorious prison, CECOT, for deportees the Trump administration had swept up and accused of being gang members. Despite revelations that most of the men had no criminal convictions in the U.S. or proven gang affiliations, as well as concerns about harsh treatment, both presidents touted the move as a win.

In “The Deal: Trump, Bukele & the Gangs of El Salvador,” FRONTLINE and reporters from the El Salvador news outlet El Faro investigate what was behind the controversial deal, and what each leader stood to gain.

Through interviews with current and former U.S. officials, reporters and insiders, the documentary shines new light on Bukele’s tangled history with the gangs the U.S. is fighting, why Bukele offered to imprison U.S. deportees, and who he asked be returned to El Salvador from U.S. custody in exchange, in what one reporter calls “a deal within a deal.”

“The Deal: Trump, Bukele & the Gangs of El Salvador” is a FRONTLINE Production with Deal 2025 LLC in association with El Faro. The reporters are Carlos Martínez and Óscar Martínez. The co-producers are Pedro Álvarez Gales and Katherine Griwert. The writers are Jeff Arak & Juan Ravell. The producer is Jeff Arak. The director is Juan Ravell. The senior producers are Frank Koughan and Eamonn Matthews. The managing editor of FRONTLINE is Andrew Metz. The editor-in-chief and executive producer of FRONTLINE is Raney Aronson-Rath.